I went last weekend to a Christian constumer fair, I don`t know how it is outside Brazil, fellas from US can help me in this matter, but it was a very embarrassing theme after you see consumerism lessons from Tom Sine.
The fair was full of people, at the beginning I got very disturbing to find little stands with singers singing with their sound system at a very loud level, and after you got with a crowd of people waiting for a celebrity to sign his photo. It is hard to skip your sarcasm when you see these things beside a hole evangelical band cut the entrance line ahead of you or when you see a stand with children characters a lot similar to a character first place in the market.
Would Jesus make the same thing that he done at Jerusalem market? How much are all these things needed to reach out the world for Jesus?
I think we have quite everything material we need to proclaim the Kingdom, but the main things are not at sell.
Anyway, at least I could get good discounts in some books, new Vineyard CDs (which had no bands singing at their stands) and a VegieTales DVD to my doughter, they finally got here and I liked their David story a lot!
Monday, September 27, 2004
Friday, September 24, 2004
Confessions
Thanks to Rick Stilwell, a very nice post from Ooze Blog, a great step to authenticity:
"Confessions of Leaders & Pastors Who Are Reimagining Church":
1. We'll confess that we are often cynical, whether it be from a past hurt or a Radical Empiricism.
2. We'll confess that we are often optimistic and hopeful. That it's our great love for God and Jesus as proclaimed in the scripture that propells us toward living the way we do, and believing about what we believe. Often this leads to Idealism.
3. We'll confess that in our desire for faithfulness and enthusiasm for new ways of living out the Kingdom of God, we are often guilty of the very same narrowmindedness that we say we have left.
4. We'll confess that we need humility in these matters. We need to hold great convictions and simultaneously live with, what my friend calls "a posture of I don't know".
5. We'll confess that we will likely do good, badly. That we will live rightly, wrongly.
6. We'll confess that we are optimistic about the mutual admiration of the various faces of the Church. This leads us to diving headlong into discussions on the Bible, the church and philosphy often with frustrating outcomes. Ironically, it is these outcomes that actually reinforce our cynical thinking about the Church, leading us toward narrowmindedness. (see #3)
7. We'll confess that we have nothing to prove, but we often live like we do.
8. We'll confess that it's hard to confess some of these things because we fear others will take them in a manner they are not meant and use them against us. (see #7)
"Confessions of Leaders & Pastors Who Are Reimagining Church":
1. We'll confess that we are often cynical, whether it be from a past hurt or a Radical Empiricism.
2. We'll confess that we are often optimistic and hopeful. That it's our great love for God and Jesus as proclaimed in the scripture that propells us toward living the way we do, and believing about what we believe. Often this leads to Idealism.
3. We'll confess that in our desire for faithfulness and enthusiasm for new ways of living out the Kingdom of God, we are often guilty of the very same narrowmindedness that we say we have left.
4. We'll confess that we need humility in these matters. We need to hold great convictions and simultaneously live with, what my friend calls "a posture of I don't know".
5. We'll confess that we will likely do good, badly. That we will live rightly, wrongly.
6. We'll confess that we are optimistic about the mutual admiration of the various faces of the Church. This leads us to diving headlong into discussions on the Bible, the church and philosphy often with frustrating outcomes. Ironically, it is these outcomes that actually reinforce our cynical thinking about the Church, leading us toward narrowmindedness. (see #3)
7. We'll confess that we have nothing to prove, but we often live like we do.
8. We'll confess that it's hard to confess some of these things because we fear others will take them in a manner they are not meant and use them against us. (see #7)
Thursday, September 23, 2004
Is There a "Blue Man" inside us?
There is the kind of article I need to read every month: "The (blue) man inside", by Adam Wright.
It is very difficult go out of routine, but I am very sure God made us to be much more than our job description tells, God made us to create also, to live.
I got very relieved when I read that I am not defined by what I do in my job.
Ah! I liked "Blue Man" very much, but appreciated more after getting their DVD, very fun!
It is very difficult go out of routine, but I am very sure God made us to be much more than our job description tells, God made us to create also, to live.
I got very relieved when I read that I am not defined by what I do in my job.
Ah! I liked "Blue Man" very much, but appreciated more after getting their DVD, very fun!
Tuesday, September 21, 2004
A Tale of Three Kings
I read today a very interesting booklet called "A Tale of Three Kings", it is a tale about Saul, David and Absolon, it was very nicely told and tells about power, kindness and submission to Will of God.
Above all I saw through the book how the eager for control have no meaning. I was very touched by this, for the people that suffered and saw theirself in power or interest games and divisions, i do recommend.
Above all I saw through the book how the eager for control have no meaning. I was very touched by this, for the people that suffered and saw theirself in power or interest games and divisions, i do recommend.
Mostard Seed vs McWorld...
... reinventing life and faith for the future.
I was waiting for an oportunity to import this book from Amazon and to lower my Wish List until a friend telling me that this book were already available in Brazil with another title :"The Hidden Side of Globalization", I would never know about it with this very oportunistic title!
I have finished and apreciated it a lot! From a Greenpeace guy and an executive, I am closer to an executive, but this is not to say I am closed to social ideas, I just get discomfort when comes more social minded guys and try to blame you of having what you have and ebarass the church as evebody were obligated to donate, I rather trust discipleship and the work of Holy Spirit to move hearts and souls to see their goods as blessings to be given to people who need. I think this books helps church very much for this kind of work.
I liked very much the aplication of futurology to church, as business does. It is really a pity churches do not worth this kind of work and feel comfortable to answer questions made yesterday, but make nothing to prepare to answer questions to be made tomorrow. Tom Sine made himself very clear, a summary of his concern in this book is that Globalization process is absorving more and more of medium class money and time through his appeal to consumerism. The bad consequence of this is that church will be more needed, but will have less grasp as long as medium class will have less time and money to dispose to Kingdom.
I remember when I was taking discipleship class and simple life class was the harder of all the course. But here is a great answer, we can live with much less than we live now and we can serve God on what we have, this is the core of stwardship.
I thought this reading very important which can generate a very good discussion, mainly to the US people, from whom Tom Sine tooks a lot of examples and applications.
Their examples are very good and so creative, I thought courious the new kind of monastic community purposed.
Linked to this theme, I remember a very nice documentary called "Surplus - terrorized into being costumers" shocking and interesting, it said a similar message that consumerism is taking people to nowere and to sadness, but his answer to this was far from satisfying, it is reflected by the violence at G8, IMF etc. Mostard Seed remains a so better answer.
I was waiting for an oportunity to import this book from Amazon and to lower my Wish List until a friend telling me that this book were already available in Brazil with another title :"The Hidden Side of Globalization", I would never know about it with this very oportunistic title!
I have finished and apreciated it a lot! From a Greenpeace guy and an executive, I am closer to an executive, but this is not to say I am closed to social ideas, I just get discomfort when comes more social minded guys and try to blame you of having what you have and ebarass the church as evebody were obligated to donate, I rather trust discipleship and the work of Holy Spirit to move hearts and souls to see their goods as blessings to be given to people who need. I think this books helps church very much for this kind of work.
I liked very much the aplication of futurology to church, as business does. It is really a pity churches do not worth this kind of work and feel comfortable to answer questions made yesterday, but make nothing to prepare to answer questions to be made tomorrow. Tom Sine made himself very clear, a summary of his concern in this book is that Globalization process is absorving more and more of medium class money and time through his appeal to consumerism. The bad consequence of this is that church will be more needed, but will have less grasp as long as medium class will have less time and money to dispose to Kingdom.
I remember when I was taking discipleship class and simple life class was the harder of all the course. But here is a great answer, we can live with much less than we live now and we can serve God on what we have, this is the core of stwardship.
I thought this reading very important which can generate a very good discussion, mainly to the US people, from whom Tom Sine tooks a lot of examples and applications.
Their examples are very good and so creative, I thought courious the new kind of monastic community purposed.
Linked to this theme, I remember a very nice documentary called "Surplus - terrorized into being costumers" shocking and interesting, it said a similar message that consumerism is taking people to nowere and to sadness, but his answer to this was far from satisfying, it is reflected by the violence at G8, IMF etc. Mostard Seed remains a so better answer.
Sunday, September 19, 2004
The attraction for conspiration
Finally I have got to finish Da Vinci Code, as already told, I wished to complete all book at the beach, but I have just got to read half of the book there, since them, I have been dealing to read three books, but at the light hours I was reading chapter by chapter and I finally got it. It was long time I was not envolved with a ficction, it is a somewhat good fiction and a good entertainment.
The problem has been when people starts to take this message seriously, in the hope that what we got from Jesus Christ had never existed, for this I have heard that Jesus went to India after crucifition, that all his parables came from essenious now that Jesus let the church be leaded by Mary Madalene, that his teachings came from mithology.
Whay so much way out of Jesus has been created?
By the other side we have a comment from Andrew Careaga for my post of September 3rd telling the fear many evangelicals show defining the book as bad to be read by a Christian, if my faith must be protected by any kind of idea, I think this is not a faith, but a faith as ilusioned by any creed to a myth we have today.
We are close to a launch of a book from Erwin Lutzer in portuguese, I think it would help me very much in this kind of discussion.
The problem has been when people starts to take this message seriously, in the hope that what we got from Jesus Christ had never existed, for this I have heard that Jesus went to India after crucifition, that all his parables came from essenious now that Jesus let the church be leaded by Mary Madalene, that his teachings came from mithology.
Whay so much way out of Jesus has been created?
By the other side we have a comment from Andrew Careaga for my post of September 3rd telling the fear many evangelicals show defining the book as bad to be read by a Christian, if my faith must be protected by any kind of idea, I think this is not a faith, but a faith as ilusioned by any creed to a myth we have today.
We are close to a launch of a book from Erwin Lutzer in portuguese, I think it would help me very much in this kind of discussion.
Friday, September 17, 2004
Rambling Reader Group
Rick Stilwell started a reader group, I had already joined in, we should read books close to Len Sweet, Brian McLaren and others from the emerging church movement, if you see yourself in this journey and want to join us here the link:
Rambling Reader Group - Join us as we READ TOGETHER - asking the questions and looking for answers, which usually lead to even better questions. With a Christ-centered bent to our discussion, learning in fellowship community how to live like Jesus in the Kingdom
Rambling Reader Group - Join us as we READ TOGETHER - asking the questions and looking for answers, which usually lead to even better questions. With a Christ-centered bent to our discussion, learning in fellowship community how to live like Jesus in the Kingdom
To reflect in your weekend
From the book "Mustard Seed vs. McWorld: Reinventing Life and Faith for the Future", Tom Sine
It seems we have got out of the trail, have you seem wich signal we lost? How to get back?
"It seems that being a christian was reduced to a little more than a devotional refreshment that avoid the motor to boil, trying to get the top of the mountain, trying to get the top in our career, in our social life and in our childen activities... Most of us - be evangelicals, traditional protestants or catholics - seem to have acepted without questioning that a better future means to increase as much in our professional career, to live in a nice place, and to lift up in our social life. As our secular partners, it seems that we have got the idea of the more we get the more we are"(translated by me from my portuguese version)
It seems we have got out of the trail, have you seem wich signal we lost? How to get back?
Saturday, September 11, 2004
Nice Tunes!
Because of my leg bruise I spent more hours connected today, I went to Mars Hill Community Church site (Seatle), filled out a playlist with their music and kept listening, it was like staying with them in a service (Yes I know, it is very far from it, but I am starving for a service like this!), it worth it a lot!
Thursday, September 09, 2004
Do you wanna see a church birthing?
I received in "New Kind of Christian" discussion group a mail from a girl that is participating for a start up project for a Mennonite church, their name is Vintage 242 Church, " A Community of God lovers, God doubters and God Seekers", it worths to see.
My prayer for a brazilian example in Sao Paulo continues, as posted last month
My prayer for a brazilian example in Sao Paulo continues, as posted last month
Nothing like a day after other...
After an awsome holiday at the beach I had a terrible workday with hours very frustrating, so frustrating that my happiness for a wonderful travel were totally gone. But there came to my mind a music (things from Holy Spirit), don't know if there is an English version:
How great is to be reminded about the faithfullness of God in the middle of a though moment, I want to praise my God and to thank Him for his faithfullness and for His kindness. Thank to Him one day will not surely be like the day before, I Thank Him because with Him I can have Hope, it is Great! It is great to know that there will be allways an opportunity of change and all bad will be used to our good, the bad momments will even be used to prepare us to enjoy good moments with all happiness.
This music start with this verse:
"He is with us forever, our Emmanuel, strong God, Powerful, forever is faithfull.."
How great is to be reminded about the faithfullness of God in the middle of a though moment, I want to praise my God and to thank Him for his faithfullness and for His kindness. Thank to Him one day will not surely be like the day before, I Thank Him because with Him I can have Hope, it is Great! It is great to know that there will be allways an opportunity of change and all bad will be used to our good, the bad momments will even be used to prepare us to enjoy good moments with all happiness.
This music start with this verse:
"Give thanks to our Lord the King of Kings, because his love is forever"
Friday, September 03, 2004
A quiet week? Not so much
I am in the end of the week with some things to be posted but with no environment to do it through this week, tomorrow begins a holliday that ends just on thursday (September 7th, independance day), and I finally could be able to go to the beach (Ubatuba, afer 13 months without sea and sand!), since now I am prepared to take more than the usual 3,5 hours to get Ubatuba and to find there too many people, but my needs of beach is bigger than my fears of uncomfort. I am looking forward to post again later, after I come back on Thursday.
From now I can share that I began reading "Mustard Seed vs. MacWorld" and I am appreciating it very much.
For this holliday, I plan to read the very talked "Da Vinci code" between swimming and caving some holes in the sand with my doughter. I have found a Review of this book in Relevant Magazine, I think it would might help.
I am counting with your prayers.
From now I can share that I began reading "Mustard Seed vs. MacWorld" and I am appreciating it very much.
For this holliday, I plan to read the very talked "Da Vinci code" between swimming and caving some holes in the sand with my doughter. I have found a Review of this book in Relevant Magazine, I think it would might help.
I am counting with your prayers.
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